Madonna night at The Globe

All I need to say is Madonna night at The Globe and show a couple of pictures; and the rest is pretty obvious. Greta and I had a great time dancing NON STOP! From the moment we arrived to the moment we left our feet were moving. IT was the best night out I have had in...well years! However the hang over the next day was BRUTAL ugh, just thinking about my headache gives me a headache. Eh, it was worth it!

Bad National Geographic!

Nat'l Geographic got me all excited with news that Mei Xiang and Tai Shan were going to be on the cover of the July issue. Well it seemed that they don't know how to count. They held a poll on 3 potential covers and the "Rome" one got the most votes but under the panda cover it says "Editor's Winner". WTF? I got online last month and RENEWED my subscription soley for the purpose of seeing my panda on the cover of FUCKING National Geographic. But NOOOOOOOOOO...now I have a subscription for something I get for FREE in the library. Errrrrrr I am SOOOOOO MADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD! I want MY PANDA ON THE FRONT COVER! Who would vote for skulls over a panda face? Bastards...I hate you!

Now in case I have this all wrong, help me out. In Australia the cover for NG July is the picture of the skulls. Can SOMEBODY confirm that this is true for the US? I figured that there was only one edition...but I have been wrong before!

Picture Time!

Here are some new pics to add to the collection!

Front Garden















Backyard Heart Garden















Cappers swimming















Bad Cappy who rolled in dirt after her swim (she is Todd's dog when she does that!)













Todd and Greter













Casey with a bun he found on his walk (did you know there is also a sock in there too!)

Material things I miss

I don't miss the US per se, but I do miss some material things from the States. These are some things that I not only miss but CRAVE!

1. Black beans
2. York peppermint patties (I did find some at a "speciality chocolate" shop down town and I bought a bag for $15.00! YOWZA...I used to buy a bag at CVS for $0.99)
3. Bath and Body works Rosemerry/Peppermint body wash and lotion
4. A-1 Steak Sauce
5. Girdelli brownies
6. Playtex tampons
7. Mom's chicken pot-pie
8. Listranni's pizza
9. Good coffee
10. Roosevelt Island
11. Inexpensive paperback books (I have no IDEA why books are so expensive over here!)
12. Ditropan XL for my overactive bladder (not approved and never will be)
13. Inexpensive CDs
14. Whole Paycheck (I mean Whole Foods)
15. Being able to get to another major city quickly (not possible in Oz)
16. Last but not least my friends

In all fairness, these are some things I LOVE about Brisbane
1. Close to the best beaches
2. All the fresh fruit and veggies you can eat
3. Excellent wine (and very affordable)
4. No huge crowds
5. Lots of space
6. Perfect weather
7. Close to Greta
8. 36 hour work weeks (well ok, not for me at least)
9. No hustle and bustle of DC
10. Clean air
11. Being able to afford a yard AND be a student at the same time
12. Line drying my clothes (no one owns a dryer in Queensland!) and feeling evironmentally responsible for doing so.
13. Ease of recycling everything
14. Composting
15. Year round garden of veggies and flowers
16. New friends

Power and Sex: Sex in the city?

I have been inspired by Foucault to add another dimension to my studies of Cambodian adolescent health. Adolescents, particularly female adolescents, are vulnerable to power differentials. I am curious how this tranlates into sexual encounters and the decision making process of whether or not to have sex. I am perplexed though because because I know so little of power and sexuality in my own culture I am not sure where to start in another. My mentors both agree that not addressing power and sex in my thesis would leave a big hole, so I have to find away to address it with what little knowledge I have of Khmer culture.

So what does Foucault think of sex? He believed that sex in the western world " has broken with the tradition of ars erotica and bestowed upon itself a scientia sexualis by adapting the ancient procedure of the confession to the rules of scientific discourse." While S.E.Asia, S. Asia, Rome, and to some extent the Middle East have enjoyed sex as erotica, the Western world got hung up in the belief of sex as a dirty sin. This was no coincidence as after the Enlightenment there was also the rise of the church and the redemption of confessions. The confession has spread its effects far and wide; we confess our crimes, our sins, our thoughts and our desires. Whatever is most difficult to tell we offer up for scrutiny with the greatest precision. We confess in public and in private to parents, educators, doctors, loved ones in pleasure and in pain, things that would be impossible to tell anyone else. The confession can be voluntary or wrung from a person by violence or the threat of it. Sex, albeit hidden we are told, has been the privileged theme of confession from the Christian penance to the present day. We have made sex "scientific" and something to be analyzed. He was very interested in why we even talk about it and for that matter so am I. We talk about it but usually in medical terminology and negatively. In Thailand for example it is something very private but also pleasantly mysterious. Perhaps talking about it would lessen this privileged locus?

While Foucault did not believe in sex being repressed per se, but what is repressed is the act itself. In Victorian times anything pleasurable was repressed including sex. Therefore sex outside of marriage, outside of the bedroom, outside of the purposes for procreation was greatly frowned upon. Subsequently the only outlets for repressive feelings were the shrinks office and prostitution. Then the government got interested in sex and it all went downhill. So how come we can talk about it, but not really talk about it? This is an important issue I want to address with these female adolescents. I want to know where the power lies in discussing sex and the act of having sex. Who has the power? Who/what represses? Discourse is important because, language and knowledge are closely linked to power. Speech and writing are not simply the communication of facts that occurs in a vacuum. As important as what is said is who decides what is said. Foucault develops a complex body of thought out of the old saying that "knowledge is power." Whoever determines what can be talked about also determines what can be known. Whoever determines what can be known effectively determines how we think and who we are. According to Foucault, then, language and knowledge always have a political edge. So is relation to my question, who are those who hold the knowledge about sex in Khmer culture and how do they control it. Since they control the knowledge they also control the power. As they say "knowledge is king"!

Happy Birthday to Tai Shan

My big boy is 1! Happy birthday big guy. I miss you and I can't wait to see you this fall. I hope your fruitcicle rocks and you get lots of presents. Check out the link to the Post about his birthday party.

Missile and Dicks

Ah yes, I believe some posturing is going on between N. Korea and the USA. N. Korea is saying look at how big my dick, I mean missile, is and look at it fly. Only it didn't. It went limp...how embarrassing. W on the other hand sounded like a complete fool in his press conference when he said (and I quote) "A missile test by a hostile nation is a bad thing and we will have to look into it further." Hmmmm, I think we all know that W, thanks. Of course W's penis is quite small, so he sends Rumsfeld and Cheney out to display theirs. However, Korea does not seem impressed. So here we are. A bunch of men with small peniss' and big missiles. I believe this is a recipe for disaster.

Now a woman would get on the phone and be like "Bitch, why do you have to be so agro? Why you got to flaunt your shit in front of my man? Probabably fake too...Yeah that's right, I called your missles fake. No REAL missile would stand straight up like that... Oh you want to scrap? Bitch be at the corner in 2 minutes and I will bust your ass!" That is how women would do it. With their fingernails and hair pulling. Fair and square.

All I have to say is Katia for North Korean Ambassador!

My heart garden

Some girls get flowers and chocolate from their man, I get a whole garden. Yes, I am lucky. Who needs flowers that last a week when I can have a Mediterranean garden! Todd is growing me eggplant, pumpkin (ok, Australian), cucumber, basil, tomato, and blue flowers along the edge. My favorites! What makes it even better is that I have someone else weeding and watering it. This is a picture taken a month ago but with all the rain it has grown quickly. I am so spoiled!

Phuket Laguna Triathlon

So I am toying with the idea of doing the Phuket Triathlon in December. I really, really, really, want to complete an Olympic distance triathlon this year, but the Australian race scene is very quiet at the end of the year. Could it be because it is summer and oppressively hot? I wager to guess "yes". So I was checking out the rules and under the running section it says that "you may run, walk, or crawl on the run section of the race." Holy smokes...CRAWL? Jesus, what kind of race is this anyway? I was pretty impressed to read that the winner gets an elephant ride. Oooooh an elephant ride. I wonder if the loser gets a panda.

In the news

Well it seems inevitable, DC is going to blow up. Who wants to bet that North Korea has their missile locked in on 1600 Pennsylvania Ave? I am willing to put my money on it. Let's see what else, 2 soldiers were found dead in Iraq from apparent torture (according to the Post "barbaricaly tortured"). They were 23 and 25...nice. Iran is well on their way to fueling up the next test missile. Who wants to guess where that will be targeted at? The WHO announced that even though we have spent trillions of dollars in HIV/AIDS mitigation, we really have nothing impressive to show for it. What I want to tell the fucking WHO and all these other rich nations is that FIRST and FOREMOST you must address poverty. If a mom has to have sex to feed her kids, guess what prick head male leaders,...she is going to prostitute herself. No amount of bible speak or Christian rhetoric is going to stop her child from crying of hunger. WAKE UP! I would do it and so would most of you.

On that note, I am a bit distressed over my own research. I just read a bulletin put out by UNESCO which talks about reproductive health programs in South East Asia. Not good news. Basically, NGO's are pumping in huge amounts of money but the poverty is so overeaching that safe sex and family planning take a back seat. Unfortunately, women who have lots of kids are in poverty. Such a viscous cycle! So where does that leave me? I have no idea. How can I address reproductive health in a country where poverty has only INCREASED since they became liberated from the Khmer Rouge. Capitalism has done nothing (surprise surprise) to help Cambodians...especially women. So I feel like I am merely putting a band-aid on a femoral hemorrhage. How can I convince readers that RH is an important issue, if I don't really think it is anymore?

On a good note, researchers in China believe that there are more pandas in the wild then previously thought. Through DNA testing of panda feces they are able to track migration, numbers, and mating. I love DNA! Now that is one good piece of news!

The biggest birth event of the year!

Many of you are thinking Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie...no try again. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes? Nope! Amy and Tad Dunn take the front page with the new addition of baby Andy. Born May 26th at 7:05 am and came in at 8lb 12oz. Love the black hair! Ooooh how cute! Cody is now a proud brother! Congratulations to all of you guys!

Speaking of birthday, Happy birthday to my Cappers...she is 2!

Queen's Birthday

We had an excellent long weekend, which we celebrated in style. For the first time in months, we actually got some rain. It POURED on Saturday, which was a welcome sight. By Sunday it was clearing and we decided to head down to the Brisbane Botanical Gardens. The gardens are next to the river and it was a lovely morning alone...without any dogs. We had some coffee and lunch down town before heading back up to the house for some massive cleaning. Being that it was super wet and muddy on Saturday, you can imagine the state of our floors with 2 dogs by Sunday afternoon. Yeah, you don't have to imagine to hard. So we cleaned and cleaned on Sunday afternoon...all day...for a long time. Then I made a tasty snapper dinner and we went to bed early, very nice.

Monday was a beautiful day for a BBQ. We had Greta and Mr. T up plus our new friends Phil and Glen. They brought over their dogs too and we had a great time. We ate and drank for 5 hours. Then we topped off the day with an intense round of Bocci Ball in the park. Such a nice weekend. It sucks to be back in my office with no wine and cheese for lunch. Damn these long weekends!

Adventures in Brisbane

So Todd is in Hawaii doing what he needs to do and I am in Brisbane watching the homefront. How hard can that be? Sheesh I am super woman! My GOD when does he return! I am doing well but damn this single parent shit sucks.

Let's sum up some of my adventures:

I left Bruce (the beta) too close to the stove top the morning after Todd left. His glass bowl was really cold and I guess the heat contraction was just too much. I heard a crack and a hiss, as I was turning on my new vacuum for the first time, and I could not figure out what the noise was from. As soon as I walk in, his glass bowl falls apart and Bruce cruises across the hot range on his way to the floor. I save him off the hot burner and dump him in the dogs water dish. Well the dogs loved that. Fish in the bowl and nasty algae water EVERYWHERE. Being water dogs, they start playing in the water on the floor and continue to get really frisky and chase each other around the house. Meanwhile I have the bowl above my head trying to save Bruce from the dogs. I run across the floor to escape the dogs and I slip on the water which sends me hurtling into the family room. However Bruce remained unharmed. I still have to clean up the algae foot prints. Bruce was ok but a little stunned. The dogs were happier then pigs in shit, covered with algae water and chewing the sea grass. Nice...

I later try out my super duper vacuum. Serious Electrolux stuff. I spared no expense on this one. This shit has a car motor in it which means super suction power and heavy use. I need both in this house. I turned it on and went around the corner to move a chair and the puppy got to close. Sucked half of his little body right up. I was seriously afraid I would have to retrieve him in the HEPA filter. He was freaked out as I was trying to get his leg out of the hose. It didn't occur to me to turn off the vacuum first. Fucking house work...not for me! I nearly sucked up the dog.

So after a few days without Todd, cereal for breakfast was getting old. I decided to go marketing and fix myself something warm. I found my way around the supermarket ok and proceeded to cook myself a nice meal. I bake, not cook mind you. I burned the chicken, turned the broccoli into paste, and charred my potato. The potato caught on fire and I had to throw it out the window. The puppies thought that was great! Now there are bits of charred potato all over the yard. I ended up ordering pizza, it was safer.

I almost washed ANOTHER gecko! I saved him though. That will learn him for hiding in my sock. Todd would never forgive me!

Cappy is moping that Todd is gone and she insists on sleeping on the couch. She is clever and gets up there at 3am when I am not around. Last night I put on her Frontline behind her neck. Guess what slept on their back on the couch last night? Yeah...you are right. The couch is now ruined and I already am pricing having it re-upholestered. That oily mess will never come out. Great...

On a better note, we did get our crate and I put the bed together all by myself! I put the allergy cover on, set up the frame, and hoisted the oversized queen mattress on it myself. I am so proud of myself.

Introducing...

Todd and I have been engaging in un-protected sex and we created a puppy. IF ONLY! Actually, the truth is we fell in love with his big black eyes and decided to take him home with us. His name is Casey and he is a 12 week old golden (weird, another golden.) Cappy hates him. She is so jealous yet aloof at the same time.
She refuses to accept my pets/scratches when he is close by. Either I give her my full attention or none at all...she is such a diva. Oh well, she will come around. After all, how many first born children like their siblings at first? Not too many.


Dad is Bailey-the dark golden
Mom is Lilley-the light golden
and Casey is the little guy







Casey is from the country, about 1.5 hours south/west of Brisbane. He is very scared of cars and the noise from the cross walk signal. Not too many of those out in the bush. It is ironical that we got him. His grand father came from America (only 4 registered American Golden Retrievers in Queensland) and his mom is an Australian golden. The difference is that the American type are darker in color and bigger. The Australian (actually English type) are smaller and very light in color. He will fall somewhere between we think. He has a great manner and he is such an attention hog. Not like Cappy at all. Even as a pup, she was not very attention needy or cuddly. He is all that and more! We love him, even though he is a winger!

Ah yes, the literature review

Dun, dun, dun...it has arrived. Time to sit down and really comb through the literature. Ugh, my procrastination abilities are in full swing. I have re-laced all my running shoes, cleaned my trash can with a q-tip, clipped the dog's nails, browsed the internet for further ways to procrastinate, and now I am blogging. I just can't seem to organize my thoughts as to what I need to extract from all the readings. My mentor tells me that I should be asking critical thinking questions about the current literature and what methods they used. Oh GOD, that could take me years to ask questions like that! I am despairing, what do I do?

Supposedly the lit review is 1/3 of my PhD work. Greaaaaat...so in other words, don't fuck it up.

I am so tired it is pathetic. I have been going to bed at 7pm (hmmm, sub-conscious procrastination?) and sleeping until 7am. 12 hours...huh? Who needs that much sleep? Certainly not someone who sits in front of a computer all day! I really knocked my head last week and I am wondering if that might have something to do with it. After my run in (no pun intended) with the bike last week I have been unable to run. So I popped on the elliptical trainer for a workout. Nearly killed myself! I bent down to scratch my leg and the handles (which move with your feet, and my feet were still moving) knocked me on the head and I fell off the machine. I have a huge bump on my head and sometimes it throbs. Exercise is going to kill me! Sheesh, I can't even procrastinate by exercising!

Biking and running

So this week is off to a really rough start. Not good actually. There has been much maritial strife (can't we all just get along?), which I won't go into because I am tired of thinking about it and my eyes are STILL puffy 2 days later, and other stressors that seem bad, but are not...I have low tolerance right now. My bad week was started on Monday by an event I never thought would happen.

I am off for my run on Monday in the park. Nice day, clear sky, and about 60F...perfect running weather. I am on the path when all of a sudden this girl on her bike comes hurling down the hill (not on the bike path, obviously taking a precarious short cut) when she loses control and smacks head on into me. The front of her bike smashes into my knees and knock me back along the path. I literally was soaring in the air. I landed on my hip and skid across the path. To add insult to injury she keeps moving in my direction and runs over my knee when I am on the ground. She has the gall to say "OH MY GOD, are you ok?" No bitch, I am not fucking ok. She was in her school uniform and all of a sudden 30 teenage girls approach on their bike (it was PE class) and stare down at me. I was mortified and in terrible pain. Bad girl for taking shortcuts. She ate it also, but not as bad as I. Ugh. So my run got cancelled and my knees are blue from the bruising. Plus I hit my head and I have a dull thud on the right side of my head. Next time I run, I will bring my helmet. I can not run, chase the dog, or even move quickly. That makes me the most mad, no running. Errrrrr, how will I deal with my stress now?

Pictures!

Voila, PICTURES! Here are some pics of our most recent adventures and day to day life.


Picnic with Greta, Mr. T (Greta's BF), and Todd



Me and Greta at her b-day party at the Ruby Tramp in Surfer's



Todd in the tree at O'Reilly's



Me at O'Reillys on the tree top walk



Mr. T changing Greta's tire on the way to O'Reillys. You go Mr. T!

Scouting mission

Soooooo, my safe world of lit reviews and e-mailing contacts abroad was...shall I say "enhanced". I have been advised to plan a scouting mission to Cambodia, namely Phnom Penh, for sometime this year. I had always anticipated going there of course, but reality starts to set in at one point. All of a sudden I became very anxious and nervous about traveling to such a 1) developing nation 2) a country where very few people speak english 3) sharing a bathroom down the hall (luxury to have one on each floor). "Ok" I think, I can do this. I am a seasoned traveler who has been to all sorts of places. For some reason I can not console my fears of traveling to such a foreign city. I figured that my anxiety stems from the thought of going alone. I am trying to persuade Todd to take a week and go with me, but that really depends on his working situation. Of course, there is the added burden of finding someone to watch Cappy while we are both gone. God, why is this making me so nervous? Terrible.

I tried to look at places to stay and most are very decent (thanks to all the expats and UN workers) but I don't know the lay of the land and I want to stay in a safe area that is easy to get to. The nice part is that the middle range hotels only cost $5-$10USD a night. However; I want to steer clear of the "popular" places cause I don't want to deal with backpackers while I am trying to get sleep and work done. PLUS, I don't have a personal contact in the city yet who can help me with my questions. Ugh...this is going to require some leg work. My legs are tired already.

I am also trying to hunt down a Khmer tutor and get my French conversation skills up and running. Ideally I should have the basic Khmer phrases under my belt and fall back on my French to fill in the gaps. English is still not widely spoken. If it is, it is usually spoken by the tourist guides and hawkers; not government personnel who I will be working with.

So I propose this: If you are a seasoned traveler, adventurous, and can rough it, I invite you along to keep me company. Ok, I am desperate...I will pay. Just name your price! There must be a clause in my travel grant that allows for friends to travel in cases of critical emotional support.

...on being a student

Ah yes, the student lifestyle. God I miss having a real job that pays! Now that I am settled, I can finally reflect on what I have done to myself. Shit, is this really what I want? Oh GOD, what have I got myself into? Whose idea was this anyway? So in order to simplify my thoughts I have made a list of pros and cons on being a student.

Pros:
1. Set my own hours
2. I where ultra-comfy clothes all the time (expected to look poor...no problem!)
3. I get unlimited library access plus no limit on check out items
4. If I am hung over, I just don't come in. Simple!
5. Lots of free food
6. Firm ass. No car=walk EVERYWHERE. Including walking home with groceries and wine.

Cons:
1. That double espresso every morning that used to be routine, is now a luxury
2. Lot's of reading, much of it is very dense
3. No money. My paycheck is a 1/4 of what it used to be
4. No shopping sprees...PERIOD
5. No respect, I am truly a grunt now
6. People assume I know stuff and lots of it. Sorry to let them down.
7. To poor to have a car, but that leads to pro #6

I am sure as time goes on I will more to add to the list, much more. For the time being I will try to enjoy it as much as possible.

"Friendsick"

Ok, I am not home sick per se...but god I miss my peeps. I have had dinner with Todd every night since we arrived, sans 3 days last week when I went to Cherbourg. Sure I love eating with my husband, but I miss the interesting conversation with our friends. I just want to call up a friend and have them come over for dinner and wine. I miss that...a lot. I also miss my morning walks at the dog park with Ruth, Purita, and Amy. Even having to deal with Bernie's crazy mom wouldn't be too bad. I know what you are saying: "Oh, Katia you will meet lots of new friends!" Of course I will, I am Katia...duh! However, I still miss my peeps. Missing my friends will be something long term and I don't see any reprieve in sight. I miss everyone including their dogs. Uh...I am hopeless.

Capoodle

So we have decided that we are tired of golden retrievers and we want a poodle. However, being that we have spent...oooh now a couple grand on this dog we have to make due with what we have. So after a shave, VOILA instant poodle! Or sheep...whatever she looks like.

Actually, just kidding. She got the haircut from hell and instead of the groomer (actually not a groomer I have learned) using shears to trim a golden (as you would normally due) he just put the clippers on 1 and shaved away. By the time I realized what was going on, it was to late. So now she looks like the story book character where you take the head of one animal and attach it to various other animal body parts and see what you create. She has the head of a golden and at any time the body of a lioness, a bear, sheep, poodle, or even a lab. You choose! God I hope it grows back quickly and thank GOD she doesn't realize what happened to her. First quarantine and now a bad haircut! Will she ever forgive us? BUT she does seem a lot cooler and happier, so that is one positive thing.

GOTCHA!

We got her! Here are some pics from our journey home from Sydney. We stopped at Warattog State Park on Friday night and Crescent Beach on Saturday. We had the time of our lives. The scenery was gorgeous and the weather was top notch, 82 no clouds and lots of sun. You could not ask for a better weekend. I finally feel complete and content. I am finally in Oz, I got my boy, my dog, my friends, a great program, and a great place to live. Life is good and for the first time in a long while I am the happiest I have been in years, not to mention that weird feeling called contentment. I wish I could bottle this feeling and save it for a rainy day...wouldn't that be a money maker?


Quarantine-Sydney


Crescent Beach, New South Wales

Road Trip

I have been wishing away this week. God will it ever end? All I want to do is get on the plane, collect my dog, and head north along the coast until I find a beach I like. Geeezzzz, is that so hard?

We spent most of today packing our camping stuff and being bums. I had class yesterday, so I have nothing pressing to read for next week. I can't really start working hard on my job until I meet with the outgoing coordinator. So I have nothing to do. It is really taxing on my brain to have nothing to do. I don't do it well. Sucks for me. However, I am resting up for pizza night tonight. Supposedly, this Arab guy down the road makes the bomb ass pizza.

Here is a picture of Cappy in her sleeping bag which strangely looks like my mom's...hmmm. I don't think she will need one this week. It is going to be in the 80's with lots of sun!

Finding a house: CHECK

Our househunting is officially over. We have a place on Lennon St. It was meant to be! Todd's favorite artist is John Lennon, so we figured it was a good sign. We put in an app on Saturday and they called us today to say "Congrats, it's yours". THANK GOD! We move in mid-April. We have a big backyard, fully fenced for Capper's, a huge granite counter kitchen, and 3 bedrooms. We are set! I have a short bus ride to school/work and the added bonus is that we are next to the largest dog park in Brisbane. The park is next to a creek so the dogs can swim and I am told it goes on for miles. Ahhhh, home sweet home!

The count down for Cappy is on. She had her clearance check from the quarantine vet and they will move her to the "out-going" housing wing. It is away from the new arrivals to make sure she doesn't pick anything up before she is released. I am glad this is all coming to an end. It is affecting me a lot more than I thought, and I don't like it one bit. I am consumed by it.

Oh, check out the National Zoo's update on Tai-Shan. He is so big! I love him!